Collins Family

Super Bowl Party 2010

2010-02-08T16:57:00.000-08:00

Oh Yea, We had FUN!!! Dang that food was good. Loved hanging out. Not sure what happened during the big game, but who cares... Hanging out with friends is so much more important! Thanks Steph for hosting another awesome party!

Brin is 3!

2010-02-08T16:49:00.000-08:00

Happy birthday sweetie. Brin had her very best friend over to help her celebrate her 3rd birthday. She got barbies, pom poms, and a my little pony beauty shop. Grandma Collins got her the Barbie Three Musketeers movie. She has watched that over and over and over....

Oh no! I guess the terrible two's don't end at 2 :0( Alli and Brin painted all over Brin's bed with nail polish and lip stick. As you can see, nail polish doesn't just stick on nails. And No it doesn't wash out of sheets!

Christmas 2009

2010-02-08T15:49:00.000-08:00

We decided that it was about time to start making gram cracker houses again. Next time I will have to remember to get more candy since I couldn't keep the kids (and adults) from eating it all. Of course we had our extended family (the Goodworths) over to join us in the fun.

Caden thought it might be fun to be the Christmas tree this year. At the annual Hyer Christmas Eve party we had a great time as always. We played the candy bar game. As you can see it was just as fun and crazy as all of our get togethers. This year we missed Darren's Family, Jared's Family, and Leilani (she was sick, boo).
We had an awesome Christmas this year. Caden and Holly got Snow boards. Emilie and Talon got skis. Jeff got a big screen TV (thanks to his parents buying a new flat TV,yea!). Ports was loaded with lego's and Brin got a new baby doll and some other fun toys.

Our Christmas party with the Collins Family fell on New Years Eve. Grandma Collins planned all kinds of fun activities. I wish I would have got a picture of our scrabble game... We split up into 3 teams and we each were given a box of scrabble cheese nips. It was a fun and yummy game. I have to add that Mine and Jeff's team won! We also decorated cookies, played pictionary, band hero, and exchanged presents. This year we had an especially great year doing Christmas for a very deserving and wonderful family. When Stephanie gave a report of delivering the presents with Santa, there wasn't many dry eyes in the room. I am pretty sure this will become our new family tradition.

Grandma made sure that we had plenty of noise makers to bring in the new year right.

We missed Corey's Family this year.

It's All About Emilie

2009-11-09T09:45:00.000-08:00

My sweet little girl just turned 8! This of course is a very special birthday. Emilie has been so excited to be baptised. She was counting down the days. I was also looking forward to getting some beautiful pictures of my little doll in her white dress. As you can see she is absolutely beautiful (prejudices aside...she is adorable)!

Emilie was baptised by her Daddy. Thanks to all who came to support her on this very important day!

Emmie's birthday comes at such a fun time, just 4 days before Halloween. So of course we have to have fun with it! She picked her meal (a family tradition), I just spiced it up a bit.

We figured that since she was going to get baptised on Halloween that we might as well have a huge Halloween party afterward. What a fun excuse to PARTAY! Lots of yummy fun food. I wish I would have thought to take pictures of all the fun Halloween goodies. We had a costume contest, which was won by Amber's fiance Jon. He was the cutest call girl I've ever seen!

We carved pumpkins, learned the Thriller dance, went trick-0r-treating on a hey ride, and just had a blast!

In picture:

Greg and Sherilynn Goodworth (Octomom and Scarecrow), Alex Hansen (Death), Jeff Collins (the Nun), Steve and Mandy (Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb), Tate was Bumblebee, Tyler a skunk, Talon (that scary masked skeleton thing), Taden Gunn (as himself), Me (a Gypsy), Grandpa Collins (SCARY monster), Grandma Collins (witch), Cameron (the Grim Reaper), Brant (an injured hockey player), Steph and Russ Hansen (Frankinstin's bride, and a Punk rocker), Savanah (a kitty cat), Stetson Gunn ( Who knows what that is!!), Madison M. (Super Woman), Jon and Amber (the Call girl and his Pimp), Alison G. (Santa), Grandpa and Grandma Hyer (Weirdo and Flapper), Emilie (devil), Stephanie and Maurlee (herself and a princess), I can't see Caden or Ports, but they were Death and an Army guy. Also not in picture...Jacob and Justin. Leilani's Family and the rest of Carries Family (left early...Party Poopers!)

May I Have this Dance?

2009-10-12T18:23:00.000-07:00

Pause the music at the bottom of the blog so you can hear the music they were dancing with :0)

Key the music! Anytime music is playing, these kids love to dance. They are so dang cute!!! I'm glad I thought to record it since I've never seen them dance like this before!

Nice Lashes!

2009-09-21T14:37:00.000-07:00

Just thought I would show off my lashes (compliments of Latisse). I love them!!! If you don't know what Latisse is, google it... It is a RX that you can get that actually helps you grow your eyelashes LONGER, THICKER, and DARKER. Can't beat that!!!

Happy 12th Birthday Caden!

2009-09-21T13:09:00.000-07:00

Caden is now a Deacon! He is so excited to now go to young men's and to be able to pass the Sacrament. He did such a great time on Sunday. Cade is such a good boy, one of the best! He is also very excited to be in middle school. His favorite class is band with Mr. Goodworth. He says he is going to make band cool :0). He is starting on the Trumpet. He will do great I'm very sure. Cade is a very smart boy and excels in school. Most everything comes easy for him. He is also a great help around the house and also a great babysitter. Love you Caden!!!

14th Anniversary!

2009-09-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful 14 years we have had. We both marvel at how much more we love each other since the day we were married. At that time it seemed impossible that it could be stronger. We are the perfect match in all ways. Thanks honey for the wonderful day you gave me on Sat. We had so much fun! Also, thanks to Leilani for taking the kids for the weekend so we could have some nice alone time!

Is this all we did all summer? Pretty much!

2009-08-31T13:59:00.000-07:00

In the past the Collins Family has gone to Lagoon for a wild and crazy day of rides, however this year we decided to go to Bear Lake. We all had so much fun.
Calub is the Little Mermaid, Talon build the Logan Temple, Caden created his version of the Bear Lake Monster, and Aimee, Calub, and Josh built great castles!

We were the only ones willing to try water skiing...Caden, Talon, Holly, Jeff, and Russ Hansen. The rest are a bunch of babies!

Porter had his 5th Birthday! He got a Gameboy and some games from us and Grandma and Grandpa Collins. He also got $6, which he is very excited to spend. He chose Pizza for dinner, always a favorite for him!

Porter is such a fun little guy. He always has a way of making me smile and laugh. Port's best friend is Carson Goodworth. They LOVE to hang out and do so almost on a daily basis. He is also my pickiest eater. I think he only loves meat and sweet...He at least isn't gagging anymore when I make him try new things. One baby step at a time. I am hoping by his next birthday that he will at least eat a few veggies and fruits! Porter is a great singer, however he requires some bribery sometimes to do his best singing. He loves to sing How Firm a Foundation. He is also great at choosing the right...well most of the time anyway :0)

Love you Ports!!!!

Parades and Beaches, What fun!

2009-08-11T12:05:00.000-07:00

This is a picture from our 5th parade we have done this summer! The the
me was "Back in time 2009". I didn't know that this parade was on Monday, I thought I had a full week to get ready for it, but no I had 1 day, and what can you do on a Sunday to get ready?? So after cramming my brain for a little bit I thought, Big hair 80's would be so funny. I was totally laughing my butt off as I was getting us all ready. It was like stepping back in time with my hair :0). I wish I would have got a better pic of Talon, he was halarious! Under his jacket all he had on was some big necklases. Isn't Brin a doll! Anyway, our float theme was "Then...Now, Bear Lake ROCKS!!!" We had 80's music blaring out a speaker, and we got some pretty good laughs as we went by! :0) Too Fun!

This is Brin's new cousin Tyler. Mandy and Steve are his foster parents. They have just been given the go ahead to adopt this little cutie. I am so happy for all of them. He will be very loved and cherished in thier family! The other pic is Carrie, Mandy, Ty, and me :0)

Janice, Julie, Meg, Sherilyn, and some of our kids

Want to Make a Bet?

2009-07-07T14:35:00.000-07:00

I bet you cannot read this post and not laugh out loud. I stole this from a friend and had to post it!

BANNED FROM WAL-MART...
This is why women should not take men shopping against their will. After I retired, my wife insisted that I accompany her on her trips to Wal-Mart. Unfortunately, like most men, I found shopping boring and preferred to get in and get out. Equally unfortunately, my wife is like most women - she loved to browse. Yesterday my dear wife received the following letter from the local Wal-Mart:

Dear Mrs. Gilbert,
Over the past six months, your husband has been causing quite a commotion in our store. We cannot tolerate this behavior and have been forced to ban both of you from the store. Our complaints against Mr. Gilbert are listed below and are documented by our video surveillance cameras.
1. June 15: Took 24 boxes of condoms and randomly put them in people's carts when they weren't looking.
2. July 2: Set all the alarm clocks in Housewares to go off at 5-minute intervals.
3. July 7: Made a trail of tomato juice on the floor leading to the women's restroom.
4 July 19: Walked up to an employee and told her in an official voice, 'Code 3 in Housewares... Get on it right away.'
5.. August 4: Went to the Service Desk and tried to put a bag of M&M's on layaway.
6. August 14: Moved a 'CAUTION - WET FLOOR' sign to a carpeted area.
7.. August 15: Set up a tent in the camping department and told other shoppers he'd invite them in if they would bring pillows and blankets from the bedding department.
8. August 23: When a clerk asked if they could help him he began crying and screamed, 'W why can't you people just leave me alone?'
9. September 4: Looked right into the security camera and used it as a mirror while he picked his nose.
10. September 10: While handling guns in the hunting department, he asked the clerk where the antidepressants were.
11. October 3: Darted around the store suspiciously while loudly humming the ' Mission Impossible' theme.
12. October 6: In the auto department, he practiced his 'Madonna look' by using different sizes of funnels.
13. October 18: Hid in a clothing rack and when people browsed through yelled, 'PICK ME! PICK ME!'
14. October 21: When an announcement came over the loud speaker, he assumed a fetal position and screamed, 'OH NO! IT'S THOSE VOICES AGAIN!' And last, but not least...
15. October 23: Went into a fitting room, shut the door, waited awhile, then yelled very loudly, 'Hey! There's no toilet paper in here!'

Sincerely,
Wal-Mart

Haha! You snorted admit it!

Time for new family Pics

2009-07-01T13:38:00.000-07:00

I still need to get to our family pics, but for now here are the kids. See more of my favorites on my photo blog.

Maple Dell 2009

2009-06-24T12:51:00.000-07:00

We had another great year with Jeff's family. We go every year to Payson Canyon and camp at Maple Dell, a boy scout ranch. We were not able to go up this year on Friday like we always do, so Neil (Jeff's dad) got us a hotel room so we could swim and have fun. The next day he took us to the Dinosaur Museum at ThanksgivingPoint. We all had a great time, especially the kids!

Jannie and Mom found a very distant relative that passed down the "cankles" that they lament having.

Big Fish! All my boys wish they could catch one this big!

Brinley's first time fishing. Porter caught a fish but didn't want anything to do with it once he got it. Talon caught his fish early in the morning, it jumped into a row boat full of water and he spent the rest of the day scooping water out of the boat and trying to catch the smart fish. Finally All his hard work paid off and he caught the poor fish for a second time.

MORE Temple Pictures

2009-06-02T20:13:00.000-07:00

Temple Pictures

2009-06-01T12:21:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the temple picutes I have done. I am wishing I had a different photoshop that could do a few different things like scratches. Does anyone have one that can do that?

Jinxed!!!

2009-05-18T14:45:00.000-07:00

Stitches
Two a little over 2 weeks ago Brinley was running into the bathroom to go potty and crashed into something(??don't know what??) and cut her little head open. Jeff took her into the emergency room and they opted to tape it shut to minimize the scaring on her head. A couple hours after she pulled the tape right off. So I am afraid that the scar won't be as minimal as it was suppose to, even though Jeff did a good job of gluing and taping it shut again (luckily the doctor sent us home with extra so we could change a few days later). She learned her lesson and didn't touch the tape again. In fact she wouldn't let us take them off when the doctor said we could. The tape finally fell off yesterday.

Concussion

Last week Talon thought it would be cool to hitch a ride on the back of our Suburban. I had no idea he was back there and drove off. I was almost to the end of our street when he decided to jump off. He hit the ground with so much force that he passed out and scraped up his back pretty bad. I was 15 minutes away before the kids got a hold of me to let me know Talon was hurt. Long story short, I took Talon to the doctor and found out he had a concussion. They did a MRI and it luckily came back negative for bleeding on the brain. He has about an hour of time that he can not remember including my neighbor helping him out. We were extremely lucky he wasn't hurt worse. He has had terrible headaches, but the doctor said he would be back to normal in 2 weeks.

Broken Leg

Can you believe it, ANOTHER broken leg (Emilie last summer)! Poor little Brinley is going to have to wear a cast for most of summer. I don't know who is more upset by this, me or her :0(. I was planning on playing at the beach all summer. I hope duct tape and garbage bags will do the trick!

In case you are wondering what happened, she was climbing on a little cabinet and it fell over on her and broke her bone just below the knee. I am hoping that she only has to wear the cast for a month, but it will probably be more like 2. We go see a specialist on Wednesday.
This is the cabinet. It is only about 4 feet tall, I can't believe it did that kind of damage.

Fat Cat

I was planning on taking my kittens in this summer to get them fixed. As you can see by this picture, I didn't make it! Darn it all, what am I going to do with a bunch of kittens??? Oh and our other "kitten" just may be prego also! UGGH, this stinks!!!

Oh, YES!!! Potty training tips!

2009-04-27T16:05:00.001-07:00

Guess who is POTTY TRAINED!

I have always waited until my kids were 2 1/2 before even attempting potty training. This go around, I guess I am just DONE changing dirty diapers! She is such a stubborn little girl. I almost gave up a few times, but once you start you should never give up.

Potty Training tips

1. Wait until the child shows signs of being ready

-Telling you they are wet or stinky and wanting to be changed right away

-If they are waking up dry (not always the case...Brinley didn't)

-Showing an interest in the potty

Be sure they are ready. The more ready they are the easier it will be. Talon, Emmie, and Ports were all potty trained in just a couple days.

2. Once you start

No more diapers! This one is critical. If you put them back in a diaper they get mixed signals and usually you will not have great success. Also be careful with pull ups. Kids are smart and know that pull ups are just fancy diapers (I would probably use them on boys that have bed wetting issues, but NEVER during the day). Use the padded underpants (double them up at night if needed). I also line the kids bed with waterproof pads, since I don't have a mattress cover for the bed.

Be Patient, Encourage, and Love them. It is important to give them TONS of positive feed back. If they have an accident, do not get mad. Just encourage them to try to make it next time. When they do make it, make a huge deal out of it. Do a dance, make phone calls, go around and announce it to everyone. The kids LOVE attention. Make it a positive experience and do not discourage them even if you are discouraged. Ultimately your child is the only one that can control his or her, um, well you know! So if you are being a bully, they will pee on your floor with pleasure!

Do Not Give Up! Believe me I wanted to, but my patience finally won out. Brinley took me a little longer then the others since she wasn't showing any interest in the toilet. Last week a couple times I just wanted to scream and give up. She was begging me to put her back in diapers, she was going in her pants half of the time, and she was holding #2 for a couple days until she had blow outs (NOT FUN). Then just all the sudden, IT CLICKED! SWEET! You may go through a week or 2 of horror, but if you don't give in to the little buggers, YOU WILL WIN! Just a few days ago I held little to no hope, then presto... She has it!

Hope this helps. I'm serious, this works. I have potty trained 5 kids now and this method has worked like a charm.

Easter Fun!

2009-04-22T10:26:00.000-07:00

HAPPY SPRING!!!

We actually had a pretty good weather day this year. Jackets still required, but that is way better then coats! We played all weekend with Greg, Sherilynn, Tom, and Angela, and their kids. Lots of yummy food and lots of fun!

This year we colored eggs at the Goodworths. It was so nice not to have a big mess in my kitchen :0)

Best Friends! Carson and Porter; Brinley and Alison *notice there is still snow in our yard :0(

These kids are so cute together. They are inseparable. In fact Brin and Alison are even potty training together ;)

Caden, Talon, and Emilie

Spencer (Angela and Tom's boy); Sherilynn and Angela (sisters)

How do you spell Turkey...BRINLEY!

2009-03-31T11:20:00.001-07:00

Who would have thought that such a sweet looking little girl could be such a TURKEY?

I am not kidding you. She is into EVERYTHING! Just today she has already raided the fridge and opened all the individual cheese slices. Of course she doesn't eat them, she just likes to squish them. Yesterday it was a cake, squish! The day before it was Tang mix, OH MAN did it have to get on the carpet!! The day before that it was shampoo, squish and then paint the walls (At least my bathroom smelled really good). EVERYDAY it is my pantie liners, peel off the back and stick them to... well everything! My lotion, makeup, jewelry, food, EVERYTHING!

YES...EVEN EGGS! AHH, I had just put two 18 packs in the fridge, I guess she saw me.

Luckily, or Unluckily (however you see it) I have the Brinley squad. It is their job to report to me what she is doing when my back is turned. However, most of the time they just make their own messes and then blame it on her. She is after all an EXCELLENT scapegoat!

But at the end of the day when all is messier then ever, I still have to kiss and cuddle my little TURKEY! Who could resist?

OH, DANG! She just killed my deoderant. I guess you know why updating is so hard.

PORTER

2009-03-31T11:03:00.000-07:00

Porter was spotlighted in his preschool class. As you can see his is extremely pleased with himself. He got to wear a cool crown the whole week long.

Porter was excited to have his little sister come visit him.

Porter and his class dancing.

Porters favorite food is Pizza

He is good at doing back flips (somersaults)

He loves to have sleepovers with his brothers and sister (downstairs in the Family room in forts)

He is very funny and lovable

His favorite word, "Gotcha"

Skiing Fun

2009-03-14T10:31:00.001-07:00

Skiing is so much fun! Especially since I got to go with my hunny. It was more then a little cold that day, but when we were cruising down the mtn we hardly noticed.

All these gals were so much fun to ski with. The last couple runs we found a way fun route that had a bunch of jumps on it. I'm not very good at that sort of thing, but I had a blast trying it.

Later after skiing we all had fun playing King and Scum (actually, I have no idea what the game is really called). It was the perfect game for a group.

Yes! Finally, What I Call a Weekend!

2009-03-04T15:42:00.000-08:00

Big Sky, Montana

Trisha, Jami, Me, Krissy, Erin, and Derin

Jeff had to get in a bunch of Continued education this past weekend. With all of our work starting a new business, he hasn't had enough time to get it all done. So this past weekend we went to Big Sky, Montana on a weekend get away. We were so excited that a bunch of our friends from The Ohio State University planned on being there also. We all had a great time hanging out and enjoying some time away from our little ones.

John and Derin, Holly(Me) and Jeff, Ray and Krissy, and Erin (Ray was at a class :0P )

Hanging out in the hot tubs in the middle of a snow storm. This was so much fun! And oh man, it felt good! Guess you can't see us very well ;0)

Brian and Jami, Calan and Trisha

On Friday we all hit the ski slopes. Big Sky is a great place for skiing. I just feel bad that we didn't get to go again on Saturday, since Jeff dislocated his shoulder on Friday. We didn't even come close to skiing all of the mountain. So I am figuring we had better go back again next year!

Man it was bright with the snow! I wanted more pictures, but Jeff's eyes hurt too bad so I had to settle for one with his eyes closed ;0)

Guess I can't complain!

Tag: 25 Random Things About Me

2009-02-02T11:46:00.000-08:00

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

1. I can't go one day without eating junk food.
2. I knew from the first moment that I met Jeff that I was going to marry him. We still act like newly weds and Man oh Man... I LOVE his kisses!
3. I don't get baby hungry! So how did I get 5 kids? Jeff would let me know when it was time, or nature just took control (can you say fertile!)
4. I love to have people over to our house. I am very social and love to hang out with friends and make new ones.
5. I would like to go skinny dipping again some day. Although, I really don't want cops to be involved next time!
6. I really am a good girl, I just have a little wild streak running in my veins!
7. When I go to work my personality changes to NO NONSENSE! When I work I am focused, sometimes a little too much.
8. I hate folding cloths. When I fold towels I have to try hard not to bite the tip of my tongue off. You know that sensation some people get when you scratch your nails on the chalk board, I get that when I fold towels!
9. I can't stand snobby people. I think the world would be a much better place without them! And for heavens sake, NO ONE is perfect!
10. I am NOT a morning person.
11. I don't like to suntan because I don't want wrinkles.
12. I don't like to highlight or change the color of my hair. Too much work plus I like my hair healthy. Hope I don't go grey for a LONG time!
13. I have a really bad short term memory. I forget a persons name 2 seconds after hearing it.
14. I really wish my Hunny would get me Birthday, Mothers Day, and Christmas presents. It doesn't have to be much!
15. I like to fix broken things.
16. I like my house to smell good. It can be a mess, but it had better not EVER stink!
17. I forgive very easy and love deeply.
18. I love body wash and lotion! I wish I owned bath and body works!
19. I have to daydream at night to fall asleep, it is the only way I can shut down my brain.
20. I want to start working out again. I just wish I had a YMCA near by!
21. I buy a new swim suit EVERY year. I am still searching for the impossible!
22. My kids make me SOOOO happy. They are such good kids!
23. I think I am slightly deaf. My Dad thinks I am an air head because I never hear what he is saying... Maybe I am blocking you out DAD ;0)!
24. I am OBSESSED with changing something about myself. I won't say what it is, but all that know me well know exactly what it is.
25. I am jealous of anyone who has a maid!

Over the Holidays

2009-01-09T14:12:00.000-08:00

We had a great Holiday this year. We spent Christmas Eve with the Hyer family. They were as goofy as always. My brother Darren was visiting from Mississippi, so everyone in my family was able to make it except for Jared and his little family. We all wish they could have been there. I am sad to admit, I wasn't much in a picture taking mood...So I kindof didn't get much to show. DARN IT.

One thing my family isn't short on is Dogs!

That isn't a teddy bear Brin is holding, but MoJo Leilani's doggie. Brin tried her hardest to keep him with her at all times. She was heartbroken that he didn't love her as much as she loved him.

Ports was having a blast torturing Cookie.

Poor Brin was attacked more than once by Gid's tail. Whack!! Right in the head, over and over again. She was a good sport most of the time ;0}

My dad was being his normal obnoxious self and he got "Creamed" in the face by an over teased family member. He wasn't too concerned about it though since Cookie was more then happy to clean him up....YUCK!!

My sister Amber has a hat for every day of the year practacly. All the kids had one on. I tried to get a picture of all of them, but they were way to busy playing with thier cousins to stop for a pic. But little Brin always love to "cheese" for me :)

Christmas Morning was a hit. The kids loved all thier presents.

Jeff modeling his new pants. He must not have liked them too much as he took them back the next day. Oh well :p

After the new year we got together with all of Jeff's family. We had a great time playing games. It got a little scary for a minute, as Jeff is quite competitive and felt he had been cheated . Lets just say, I am sure the neighbors could hear his funny temper tantrum. We were all quite entertained. Again I didn't take any pics. I was more then a little sick that weekend and I couldn't hold a camera because I was caughing non stop. UGGH! Oh well. There is always next year.

We also had a great time getting together with friends at a Murder Mistery Party. I loved the costumes! We had a great time. I wish we could do things like this more often.

Big Opps!

2008-12-08T11:23:00.000-08:00

Briney threw up in her bed yesterday. First I stripped her down in bed. Then I very carefully carried her to the tub. Next I went back to her bed and gathered up all the bedding and put it in the wash. All good right? Well, later I asked Jeff to put the blankets in the dryer for me. He informs me that something broke in the wash. I look and there are these slimy little clear gel balls all over everything. What in the world??? So I pull everything out, and what do I find? A DIAPER! Oh MY GOODNESS, I AM A TOTAL RETARD!!!!
Do NOT EVER wash a diaper!!!!

Who knew?? Well I DID!!!! ;}

2008-12-03T08:59:00.000-08:00

Actually this did surprize me because I was very honest. I didn't mark that I was a great house cleaner, that I wear pajama's while cooking, I probably don't brush my teeth enough... and so on, but I guess not being perfect adds up to a Great Wife!!

103

As a 1930s wife, I am
Very Superior

Take the test!

Girls Night Out!

2008-11-24T14:40:00.000-08:00

Here is my official new look!

Oh my goodness did we ever have fun! Steph, has officially made an annual girls night a tradition. We had so much fun shopping, eating, laughing, soaking, eating some more, oh and some unlady like farting too! Who would have guessed that the Ladies are probably worse then a bunch of men in a locker room. Oh the things we talked about! Don't you just wish you could have been a fly on the wall!

Left to right, Jen (Coleman), Carrie, Julie, Steph, Emily, Sherilynn, Coriann, and Me

Me, Steph, & Jen. We have not been together probably for around 13 years! It was so fun talking about the good old days! What a blast we had!

GUESS WHO THESE SEXY WOMEN ARE!!

If you guessed, Jen, Carrie, Steph, Julie, Sherilynn, me, Emily, and then Carrie again, then your right!

This YUMMY pic is of the 2 winners of the Skittles game. Sugar rush, naw!

Jen has still got some impressive guns!

Oh, and a Special thanks to Sherilynn for sharing your crabs with me!!!

The next morning we got our selves all dolled up for our HOT date with Edward Cullen. Oh Man! And that is all I have to say ;p

Our new pets

2008-11-24T14:21:00.000-08:00

We just got 2 new little kittens from the Vet's office. They needed a good home and we needed some good mouse catchers. Our other cat Jazz moved on to a better place for unknown reasons. He will be greatly missed by all of us, especially Emmie and Brin. Brin still calls these kitty's Jazz. The one on the Left is Prissy and the one on the right is Sissy. Real original, I know!

Here is our neighbor's dog, Tinkerbell. This poor dog is about as neglected as they get. She is at our house more then not. She is the culprit of all our missing shoes and all our dirty pants(jumping on us after playing in mud). As you can see she was recently ran over by Porter. Luckily she survived!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

2008-10-31T13:39:00.000-07:00

Carving Pumpkins! Left to right, Porter's, Talon's, Caden's, Brin's(cut by Talon), and Emilie's.
They designed and did them by them selves. I was holding my breath and hoping no fingers were sliced off in the process. Yikes, I wish this was one tradition my kids would forget about!

Our Costumes... Porter is a Ninja, Talon is the grim reaper, Emilie a witch, Caden a Dementor, Wyatt(Cade and Talon's friend) a soldier, Me... Sara Palin ( Pretty convincing aren't I) and Brin is our flapper!

My Pretty Baby!

2008-10-29T11:10:00.000-07:00

Brinley jut got a cute little hair cut from my GREAT friend Karen. She knows how to work magic with any hair. Poor Brin had quite the mullet before, now you would never know. Thanks Babe for working your magic on my Babe! BTW Karen also gave Brin this adorable Ohio State outfit when she was born. I can't believe she fits in it now:0( time flies way too fast.

Happy 7th Birthday Emilie!

2008-10-29T10:59:00.000-07:00

For Emmie's Birthday dinner she wanted some fun Halloween food. It was a big hit for her and for all the kids. Not very nutritious, but my kids declare I am the BEST ;0)! She got a cute outfit from her Grandparents(she wore it to school the next day). From us she got a dang cute dress she can wear to school and church and she got a $6 from her cousins.

You have GOT to be KIDDING ME!

2008-10-12T12:24:00.000-07:00

Snow in October! Not just any snow, 17 inches of snow!!
So I am counting the months, Oct., Nov,. Dec., Jan., Feb.,
March, April, May, and June... 9 stinkin months of SNOW!!!
AAAHHHH, I am going to die out here!

Luckily everyone else seems to like it. Even when they are
getting buried in it!

This snow is heavy and PERFECT for a snowball fight!
"Uh, Ports, you do know not to eat any yellow snow right"?

Aren't they sweet! All of our trees are so weighted down by the
heavy snow that they are almost flat on the ground. Talon found
that they make awesome snow caves.

Alright, I will try to be more upbeat about this. After all,
Snow boarding is just around the corner ;0)

I AM Five Mom!

2008-09-17T12:31:00.000-07:00

The other day Porter was telling me how big he is. I of course agreed with him because you never tell a BOY that you think he is still cute and little enough to pick up and hug. So he looks at me all serious with his head tilted to the side and his eyes all wide and tells me, "I am big because I am five Mom."
"No Ports you are four not five."
"But Mom I AM five!"
"You just barely turned four and won't be five until next year."
"Mom!" he said this with so much exasperation that I almost started laughing. "I am five because I had TWO birfdays!" I had no idea what he meant by that and told him so. He then explained to me that he blew out candles on 2 cakes and therefore he had 2 birthdays and IS Five!

I love my little Ports and his astounding logic!

Memories!

2008-09-17T11:44:00.000-07:00

1. As a comment on our blog, leave one memory that you and I(or any of my family members) had together. It doesn't matter if you knew us a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments.

Hiking to Sherman Peak

2008-09-15T15:50:00.000-07:00

Wow was that ever tough for a bunch of out of shape people! It was a great thing that the view the entire way up just kept getting better and better. When we all made it we were out of breath with a couple grumpy kids, but we all agree it was worth the work.

The Goodworth Family, Greg, Carson, Alison, and Sherilynn. These guys are awsome and so much fun to hang out with. We are so glad they decided to move in right at the same time we did. It was instant bonding and has been a blast since. Thanks for helping us stay young Greg and Sherilynn!

Happy Birthday!

2008-09-14T11:58:00.001-07:00

Porter was lucky this year, he was made 3 birthday cakes! He also was able to hang out with his cousin who is exactly 1 week younger.

Caden was given an air soft gun from his Grandpa Collins. I am hoping no one gets shot!!! Looking at that face, I know I need to worry;0)!

FUN IN THE SUN

2008-08-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

Every summer we just HAVE to play at the beach! We love living to one of the most beautiful lakes EVER! I am so grateful that it pleases the kids so much to go there since it is such cheap entertainment. It also doesn't hurt that we are surrounded by fun people to hang out with. Thanks EVERYONE for another fun summer at the beach!

2008-08-20T10:46:00.000-07:00

Jeff's Sister and family came to visit us this week. They are so much fun to be with.

Top: Josh, Spence, Nathan, and Calub

Bottom: Micah, Libby, Jannie, Bonnie, and Aimee

The Leavitt's did a Trek this summer and wanted to have some pictures to go with the memories. It was fun to have them dress up and pose for me!

I Loved taking pictures of all their kids, but Micah and Aimee were especially fun since they loved it. And as you can see they are all BEAUTIFUL!

Let's Go Camping!

2008-07-22T08:57:00.001-07:00

Nothing like hanging out around a camp fire, eating, and playing games! We had a blast this last weekend staying up until 1-2 in the morning. And boy oh boy did we ever get dirty and stinky! Left to right, Mandy(sister), Jared(brother), Cherice(Jared's wife), Steve(Mandy's hubby), Brin, Jeff, Me, Chris(Carrie's hubby), and Carrie(sister)

My Mom was hiding behind Emmie because she didn't want to be in a picture. Notty girl, doesn't she know that EVERYONE looks grungy when camping! I love this sexy picture of Jeff! Isn't he cute?! Also my sister Amber, she loves to ham up pictures!
Dirty Cute Kids!!!! These cousins had a blast playing with each other!
Best Buddies, Caden and Jake.

My brother, Jared, and his little family came to visit this week from Washington. I haven't seen him in 3 years! He is in the Navy so he is home for about 9 months and then back on ship or in Afghanistan or Iraq for 6 months at a time. It has been hard for me to not see my big brother. We were called the twins growing up because we are only 13 months apart and we were inseparable. We did everything together including dating each others friends.

Introducing Jami Hill!

2008-07-18T13:37:00.000-07:00

Jami Hill and her family (Randy, Hayden, and Rand). Jami has been working with us at Oregon Trail Eye Care. She has been a great help and has been so good about all the stress we have been having there. Thanks Jami, and I hope you like your pictures. You can see the rest on my other blog, just follow the link. :0)

Grandma Hyer

2008-07-11T10:02:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, July 10th, my Grandma Hyer passed away. She was a lady of conviction, if she wanted something done she knew how to go about it. She was well known in her home town of Wahiawa, HI. When I googled her I was amazed at how many times she showed up for doing things for her community. Because my Grandma was from Hawaii I wasn't able to be with her nearly as much as I would have liked to. She only met Jeff once and never got to meet any of my kids in person. I feel bad that they will only know her in pictures and stories. Grandma wasn't one for showing much affection, but she always was kind and loving to me. I will miss her and I hope she can find Joy in the next life.

2008-07-06T15:17:00.000-07:00

Having fun in the Soda Springs 4th parade. Peace around the World! Jeff, Holly, Brinley, Porter, Caden, Talon, Haylen, Jamie, and Emilie. Jamie is working with us at OTEC. We are so happy to have her with us!

Jeff and Mom Collins made me a WONDERFUL dinner and cake! YUMMY! Thanks you guys!

Just having a little bubble bath then rinsing off in the shower!

2008-07-06T14:58:00.001-07:00

Every year on the 4th Soda Springs fire department sprays out foam for all the "kids" to play in. It is a blast watching people slide through them. It feels so good in the heat. However, not so good if you leave it sitting on your skin. So after getting sprayed off with the fire hose the kids decided they wanted one more shower so we headed over to the Soda Springs Geyser. It goes off once an hour. Luckily the water cools down before it hits the kids. They loved it even though it smelled a little bit like one of Brinley's diapers!

Say Cheese!

2008-06-26T12:14:00.000-07:00

Okay, for all of you who try to take your own pictures... How do you get them to give you these smiles when you have them posed just right????

Or get them to smile with their eyes open without their mouths opening up at the same time???

Luckily I got a few!!!

2008-06-15T15:41:00.000-07:00

We had another fun year at camp Maple Dell. It has been a tradition to go to Payson, UT and stay with Jeff's entire family, including his brothers and sisters with all their families also his aunts and uncles and all their kids. This year there was about 50 people and we were all sleeping in the same room!!! This tradition started back in May of 1995. I went there for the first time as Jeff's "friend". We have all kinds of great memories at that place.

Some of the cousin's brought their wave boards to play with. It was fun to try and get the hang of those things. I tried and tried for hours to be able to go the distance of the side walk. Jeff of course hopped on and had it down in 3 seconds flat! Big brat! Caden got really good on them but had one pretty good fall and banged up his elbow. Brinley wanted to hop on too, but the helmet just wouldn't stay out of her eyes long enough!

It is beautiful up in Payson canyon. We have a beautiful itty bitty lake to paddle around in canoes. As you can see behind Emmie it is a gorges place to be.

Plenty of fish to be caught, but all Talon could get his hands on was some water grass. Porter loved helping the poor fish get back in the water if they were in good enough shape after being caught. More then a few of those unfortunate fish ended up in our tummies! YUM

Most of all we just enjoyed being with family. We played games and talked late into the nights. We hope to be able to continue the tradition for many more years!

Our Soda Springs Office, Before and After

2008-05-17T22:02:00.003-07:00

We have worked long and hard and we are now finding out that the construction was the EASY part! Starting up a business is a Darn hard thing to do. I have a new found respect for any and all that do it on their own. We are finally beginning to see patients again, but I have a long way to go on learning and setting up our office. I HATE INSURANCE COMPANIES AND BILLING!!! If I could get rid of that aspect, I think I could handle it. I am planning on working full time for another 2-3 weeks and then cutting back to 1 or 2 days a week. I can't wait to have a life back!

This area became the 2 pretesting rooms and Jeff's small office.

If you look close at this roughed in room you can see it is actually 3 rooms. The 2 bathrooms and the break room.

break room. ................................This area became a lab and exam 1.

Exam 1...............................................Lab

Exam 2

A Broken Week!

2008-05-17T21:47:00.000-07:00

Caden thought it would be awesome if he could slam dunk a ball. He didn't let his not being tall enough get in the way. Instead he climbed up the bleachers and jumped. He did dunk that ball and he even had enough momentum left to pull the entire basket ball hoop down. He is lucky the rim only landed on his finger and not his head! He shattered the tip of his finger and needed a stitch to hold down the flap of skin(which he didn't get any numbing for!), and had to have a hole drilled in his nail. Nothing that a little time and TLC won't cure.

Now my Emmie on the other hand had to go and break her leg. It was a pretty big break, but it stayed in place so it should heal nicely. It is by a growth plate, so her doctor is going to keep a close eye on it. Oh and by the way the cause of the break... Trampoline. I doubt I need to explain further!

Look Who I Look Like!!!

2008-04-24T09:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is DANG funny. I had to see what celebs I look like! I personally don't think I look too much like any of them. I tried out a few different pics of myself and different celebs came up every time. Well Mini Driver showed up a couple times. Once I even looked like John Travolta! When I told my friend Cassy, she started laughing and told me that I kind of do! LOL!! As you can see by the second look-alike, I look like mostly MEN!! What is up with that??? I guess if I didn't have 5 kids I gave birth to, people would be wondering if I underwent a sex change!

Oh, and not NOT ONCE did Barbara Strisand show up!!! So There, I DON'T look like her!!!!

A TRIBUTE TO MY CHILDREN

2008-04-17T23:04:00.000-07:00

Kids ARE smart, if not ingenious. They know that:
… Vegetable oil on a kitchen floor makes a great slip and slide.
…when mixing toilet paper with water one can make awesome bombs.
…ketchup packets explode when jumping on them.
…dumping out all of mom’s seasonings on the counter will make you sneeze, a lot.
…marbles, rocks, plastic bats, golf clubs, and heads all can break windows.
…if you dump juice in an open drawer it has a waterfall effect and every drawer under it will be affected. Oh, and grape juice works best.
…pushing buttons on an alarm system will send fire fighters to break down your door.
…playing with that stick thingy in YOUR NEIGHBOR'S truck will cause it to roll down the driveway and into the road where it can block all traffic until a cop comes knocking on your door.
…hey, using this tow rope I can walk up this tree!

If your house is quiet when children are present, they may be:
…using poo as a finger paint.
…spraying water into the heat vent.
…throwing all their books in the full bathtub.
…finger painting again, this time with Desitin
…splashing around in a bucket of paint that spilled (thanks to me not putting the lid back on tight)
…smashing bananas and/or eggs into your carpet.

Sometimes they even learn the hard way. They have learned that…
…falling out of trees can break a foot
…you should always open the door at the bottom of the stairs when riding a trike down them.
…playing with a treadmill isn’t a good idea.
…when setting up a zip line, it is not smart to tie a rope on a tree branch 12-15 feet high and attach the other end to a wheel barrow. Yes a kid weighs more than an empty wheel barrow!!!
...if you try to squeeze through a fence your head WILL get stuck.

And Last but Not least...

Grandparents are not always the best of examples!!!!

Some Proof. My kids are incredible!

2008-04-17T22:56:00.000-07:00

Boy do I wish I had pictures of all their Nottyness!!!!

HERE IS OUR NEW SIGN!

2008-04-10T09:21:00.000-07:00

We made a few changes and this is what we came up with.

What do you think?

Why Moms Shouldn't Talk On The Phone! (Edited)

2008-04-08T20:42:00.001-07:00

Oh Gross! Can you believe I actually posted that! Some day she is going to kill me!

2 days later...

Isn't it fun being a mom?!?

Eyes

2008-04-06T15:37:00.000-07:00

I am messing around with pictures of eyes to put in our office. These are my first tries, some are a little freaky, especially my eyes and Brin's. Look closely 3 of us have flowers in our eyes.
If nothing else it was fun to have something to do while listening to conference!

Your So Vain, You Probably Think This Blog Is About You!

2008-04-03T10:24:00.000-07:00

Here's a tribute to you Matt!

Your lookin good, although you are a little on the pasty side!

Hey dude,

I've been keeping tabs on you, your life, and your legal battles through Holly's blog. Very informative, but not enough pictures of me on there. I've attached a picture of me so you can post it on her blog and do a tribute to me.

Matt

WHAT IN THE WORLD!

2008-04-01T11:58:00.000-07:00

SIX MORE INCHES OF BLANKITY BLANKIN SNOW!!!!

Opening Doors!

2008-03-30T20:52:00.000-07:00

Well, things seem to be going well. This weekend with the help of Jeff's parents and Russ Hansen(brother-in-law) we were able to get all of our Soda Springs office primed for painting. My Dad has been working wonders with being a jack of ALL trades. From fixing our cars to applying silicone (oops I meant CAULK!), he has been getting it done for us. Looks like we will be able to open our doors in Soda by April 14th. I am so excited!

On the other hand, our Montpelier office will have some delays. Our favorite Mr. S ( Calling him Dr. S is giving him more respect than deserved) is using his cunning ways to keep us out. He was evicted from the office almost 4 months ago, but is refusing to leave. He has even moved all his equipment to another location to practice, but is continuing to pay rent and is using the space for his storage. It is a complicated and confusing story and even I am not sure why he can get away with it. He is bringing into act a contract that he refused to renew 7 years ago, but because the owner of the building didn't get the month to month agreement that Mr. S wanted in writing, well it is going to be a legal battle. It could be months before we get to practice in Montpelier. But we are optimistic. This will give us some time to get an income again and possibly get more equipment. I'm sure it is all a part of the plan. In the mean time Mr. S will be making his larger than life reputation even bigger!

Easter Egg Hunting!

2008-03-24T12:42:00.001-07:00

Nothing a kid likes more then an adventure that includes CANDY!

Even Little Brin didn't want to be left out. I guess she wasn't satisfied with the candy we gave her, so she reached up for the biggest basket and dumped it all over. She was in heaven!

Just Taking a Load Off!

2008-03-24T11:47:00.000-07:00

Steve, Mandy
Jeff, Me, Kathlene, and Travis

This Weekend was one of the best I have had in a long time. I was able(with my cousin Stephanie's help) to finish most of my insurance applications. This was a huge relief. I was also able to go stay with my sister Mandy's little family in Syracuse. Friday we stayed up late laughing and having a great time. Saturday we met up with two of our best friends, Travis and Kathlene. They live in Medford, OR so we don't get to see each other nearly enough. I LOVE these guys! Even though they were exhausted from their drive and having a break down in Winimucha ( I don't know how to spell, nor do I know exactly where that is!), they were a blast to hang out with. We played rock band, which by the way they ROCK at! That game is a blast. I can't wait for it to come out on wii. When it does party is at my house! Later on we went out to dinner, WITH OUT KIDS!!! That in it self was the highlight of my weekend.

Thanks for taking time to come see us. I know I goofed up on the date we were REALLY suppose to get together, but you guys were wonderful to make it happen any way. I LOVE YOU GUYS!!! I can't wait until Hawaii next year!! YIPPEE! No kids, nice warm, hanging out with you...PARADISE!

I need your help!

2008-03-21T08:22:00.000-07:00

We are trying to come up with our signs and buisness cards. Will you please give me your input on what you would do to make these better?

Oh NOse You Didn't!

2008-03-17T20:48:00.001-07:00

I was all set to put in a good day of hard work. I was actually looking forward to finishing up with all the wall paper tear down. I was just finishing getting the kids set up in the "play room" at our Soda Springs office, when Porter informed me that he had a toy stuck in his nose. I wasn't too concerned and continued hooking up the wii. When I was finished he was crying about not being able to get it out. I looked in his nose, but I couldn't see anything. The crying continued so I used a pair of tweezers to hold his nose open further, and sure enough way way up there I could see some thing green. I assumed that it was a green pellet. Jeff and I decided that there was no way we could get it out, so off to the ER I took him. I thought it would be a simple little procedure to get it out, and of course that simple procedure would cost an arm and a leg! So we start with I syringe and saline. Porter HATED that one. No luck. We moved on to nose picking tools (I have no idea what they really are). Porter HATED that even worse. Then we tried the blow test. This one was my personal favorite. I had to hold his right nostril closed while blowing as hard as I could in his mouth. The desired effect would be that the toy would blow out. All that blew out was SNOT and on MY cheek!! On the plus side, Porter LOVED that one. Next we tried to vacuum it out. No luck. Porter has had enough by now! And Last but definitely not least we decide to knock him out. So he freaks out when the nurse inserted the needle in his leg and he pulled it out before they made the injection. This left a nice cut on his leg. Once they got it in he was out before I could lay him down. Poor guy. It was AWFUL to watch. About 15 minutes later, YEA we found the toy. Can you tell what it is???

It is a sleeve off of a Polly Pocket dress Brinley bit it off in church a couple weeks ago. So not only are they choking hazards, but nose hazards too. And it only took 4 1/2 hours to get it out. I would say the ER doctor earned the arm and leg this time!

As you can tell, Porter is proud of his experience!

Doesn't this just call to you to shove it up your nose?!

Going Crazy Busy!

2008-03-13T10:58:00.000-07:00

I hate not having time to play with my blog and not being able to visit all of yours as often. I don't know exactly where all my time is going, but it is definitely going and FAST! I have been trying to help Jeff get on insurance panels. It is a royal pain in the butt!! You may as well put me in a laboratory and tell me to create a cure for cancer! I have no clue what I am doing. Last night I told Jeff I have given it my all and now I am going to pay someone else to do the rest. Luckily he has witnessed enough of my stress that he is willing to let me. Paise Heaven! I was about to go nutty! So for now I will stick with things I know how to do, setting up the physical aspect of an office. I will be pealing more wall paper and taping and mudding this weekend. Now at least I know sort of what to do in that area. So if you don't have anything to do this weekend(ha ha, ya right!) you are welcome to come join me!

Progress

2008-02-22T12:46:00.000-08:00

Things have been crazy busy for us. So even though you may not be hearing from me in person, I am thinking of you often. Today we are working on getting the Herbal Lounge repainted so that we can move the office of Maughan and Assoc. over to it (refer to pictures). Once we have that accomplished we will be able to do the rest of our knocking down walls and then begin framing, wiring, and pluming. Things are going smoothly. We are excited to see the end in sight. Again thanks for all your support and help!

Let the construction begin!

2008-02-15T09:16:00.001-08:00

...........^.................. ^................... ^...................

.......Herbal ..........Patriot............ Maughan & ....

.......Lounge .........Lending ..........Associates......

Well, here it is. The building we purchased. We are just beginning the demolition. We are hoping to move quickly on the remodel so Jeff can start practicing within a month, hopefully less. We really appreciate all the help we have been and will be receiving. This community really knows how to make a person feel good! I know it won't be possible without all of you!

I love this quote I just read by Elder Boyd K. Packer.

2008-02-13T10:30:00.000-08:00

I will try to draw strength from it. I hope it helps you also!

" You were generals in the War in Heaven and one day when you are in the spirit world, you will be enthralled by those you are associated with. You will ask someone in which time period they lived and you might hear,"I was with Moses when he parted the Red Sea," or "I helped build the pyramids'" or "I fought with Captain Moroni." And as you are standing there in amazement, someone will turn to you and ask you which of the prophets' time did you live in? And when you say "Gordon B. Hinkley" a hush will fall over every hall and corridor in Heaven, and all in attendance will bow at your presence. You were held back six thousand years because you were the most talented, most obedient, most courageous, and most righteous."
Elder Boyd K. Packer

Sorry! I really do love you!

2008-02-12T11:43:00.000-08:00

This past weekend was a hard one for me. I guess I had what you can call a melt down. My poor hunny was the one to catch the brunt of it. I can't say exactly what started it, other than a compilation of all the stress, dissapointments, let downs, delays, jerks, inactivity, ect... I can't wait for all this to end! All weekend, I found that tears were begging to be let loose, but I held back. That is until I had well meaning people ask me if I was okay. Every song, prayer, and talk made me all blubbery again. Totally embarasing. I guess the point of writing this is to let my hunny know how sorry I am and that I love him more than anything. I was snapping at him and being so rude that I made him, my ever patient and loving husband, turn a little ugly too. In all the years we have been married I can count on one hand how many times we have fought. I am so lucky to have such a sweet and caring man. I didn't mean to fall apart on you and I didn't want to be a jerk and I won't take it out on you anymore(I HOPE)! FYI (I can't promise too much when you back seat drive me, but I WILL try:).

My Jeff

We met almost 14 years ago at a tri-stake dance. From the first moment that I saw him, I knew that he was going to be special to me. One of my best friends, Jenn, informed me before I met Jeff that he was HERS and hands off. So my trying to be a good friend to Jenn led Jeff to believe that I wasn't interested. We hung out quite a few times, but always as friends. He dated other girls and I dated other guys. When my friend Jenn started dating another guy seriously, I figured Jeff was fair game and made my move. It took some convincing to get him to go out with me, but as they say... the rest is history! Through the years he has been my rock. When I have been low he has always lifted me back up. You hear stories on how it is the wife that keeps the family going, and the wife that is the spiritual one. In our case, it is him. If things don't turn out good for us, I am sure it is my fault. He is also a wonderful dad. He plays with them like he is a kid himself. He also is a lot better at disiplining them. When he tells them to do it, it gets done! With me ha ha yah right! He is also a wonderful example of service. There have even been times that I have had to tell him to slow down with helping others and spend some time with our family. He isn't much help around the house (unless you count job deligation), but he almost never complains when the house is a mess, and I do appriciate that. I know he isn't exactly perfect, but he IS perfect for me!
I love you!

8 things about myself

2008-02-02T20:11:00.000-08:00

I was tagged by my good friend Melissa. I posted this last year, but I will move it up. If you are reading this... Then Tag, It's your turn!

1. I am a girl who needs her beauty rest. If I go too many nights in a row without much sleep, watch out I bite!!!

2. I love to help people out. Go ahead ask me, I'm terrible at saying no.

3. I'm game to try just about anything. From jumping out of airplanes to eating raw fish, I'm not afraid to try. My philosophy is, You can't like what you haven't tried!

4. Just give me a book and I'll have it read and back to you the next day. I am bad at putting a book down once I get my hands on it. I really have to limit myself. Good thing there are no more Harry Potter books!

5. I LOVE taking pictures! Let me say that one more time, I LOVE taking pictures. But that's not all, I love to scrapbook them when I'm done!

6. I LOVE how I look like when I exercise and diet... Too bad I never do!

7. I tend to be very forgetful. What is your name again?

8. I Love living in a clean home, driving a clean car, and always looking well groomed. I guess I'll have that back in about 18 years!

Playing on the Slopes

2008-02-02T18:05:00.001-08:00

Caden is Skiing on the left and his buddy Tayden is on the right. Talon is

in the picture just below. The boys are having a blast learning how to ski.

According to the boys Caden is the best skier, then Tayden, then Talon.

They rate your skiing ability based on how often you fall. Oh, I forgot to

mention that they think I am the worst!!

And no wonder they think I stink, I have fallen so many times that I

have lost count. Yesterday was my second time trying snowboarding.

My behind has more spots (bruises) then a dalmations behind!!!

Steph and I were just becoming confident in our new found abilities when

she fell and sprained her ankle and moments later I sprained my wrist.

This was accomplished by putting my

hands out in an attempt to save my incredably sore behind!!!

Oh, and by the way, typing with a sprained wrist is no piece of cake!

Funny thing is, I can't wait to go again!!!

A Wonderful Example.

2008-01-28T08:48:00.000-08:00

Our Beloved President Gordon B. Hinckley Dies. With deep respect and love we honor President Gordon B. Hinckley who passed away Sunday in Salt Lake City, Utah, at the age of 97. He became President of the Church in 1995 after the death of President Howard W. Hunter. He will be remembered as a great teacher, communicator, and temple builder. His great desire was to bring the blessings of the gospel to as many people as could reach.

Great News!

2008-01-28T08:40:00.000-08:00

Last week we were given news that we have been approved for all our loans. We will be able to start remodeling our new building hopefully at the end of this week. We are going to work our tails off to try to have our doors open March first. We won't be doing any public advertising until the doors are open because Dr. S has said that as soon as we make it public he will sue us. So spread the word to give us a call and we'll set you up for an eye exam!

Thanks for all your support and friendship! We have been incredibly blessed during this time and we want all you you to know we wouldn't be where we are now without all of you!

YOU'RE FIRED!

2008-01-20T19:47:00.000-08:00

I am posting this email that I wrote to a friend explaining what is going on with us incase you didn't know. Oh, and please don't tell Dr. S about this post!

Here is the short version, well as short as I can make it. I have to start at the beginning for any of it to make since. In Nov. of 2005 Jeff and I came out here to meet with Dr. S. We agreed then that we wanted to go forward with the purchase of his practice. We agreed on a price, and a date. The date we agreed on was Jan. 2007, so a year ago. We were waiting for the promised contracts even before we moved from Ohio. We were anxious and a little nervous that we hadn't received them yet, but since both Jeff and I felt really good about coming here we moved thousands of miles without a contract. We waited and waited for the contracts and never received them in time to do the buy out in the agreed amount of time. So in essence Dr. S was in breach of contract. Jeff was constantly asking Dr. S about the contracts and he just made up excuse after excuse on why they weren't ready; my lawyer is in China, my lawyers wife is sick, my lawyer is on vacation, my lawyer is behind because of all of that, and so on. Jeff and I both knew it was a bunch of hog wash, but we continued waiting. Finally when he got us the 1st of the 3 contracts (1.the employee agreement 2. the purchase agreement 3. the lease agreement), that first contract had wording tying it to the 2nd contract which he did not give us. Jeff didn't want to sign it because of that reason. He told Dr. S that he would sign it as soon as he had contract #2 or if he took the wording out of #1 that tied it to #2. Then a little later he got us contract #2 and that contract had wording connecting it to contract #3! Are you confused yet? Anyway then the waiting game started all over again. During this time Jeff was closely watching his numbers to see if we were in the ball park of being able to pay back the loan we would need to buy the practice. Since Jeff doesn't practice the same way as Dr. S (sending patients in for surgery sooner than necessary, doing extra unnecessary testing and so forth) his numbers were not high enough. So Jeff approached Dr. S and suggested that they renegotiate the price since Dr. S had already renegotiated the time of the buy out. Dr. S refused. We didn't know what the next step for us was until October 2007 when he FINALLY got us all the contracts. Jeff and I were fuming mad when we read them. I can't tell you how selfish that man is. Those contracts were so incredibly one sided that we would have to be complete idiots to sign! In the mean time Jeff has access to all bills going through B. R. V. Dr. S is incredibly cheap and has B. R. V. pay all his bills, for tax reasons of course! Anyway the last time his lawyer had billed him was in Nov. 2006! In plenty of time for us to do the buy out. Dr. S had the contracts all along, but he held on to them while Jeff remained his cash cow. This all made since since what good lawyer would take a full year to write up contracts, and also what good lawyer would use wording connecting contracts if he was going to prepare them months apart? All kinds of fishy stuff was going on with Dr. S. So next, in November 07 we started looking into "plan B," which is starting up our own practice if Dr. S refused to work with our counter offer. We spent a couple months going over things with our accountant, lawyer, advisers, and bankers and came up with an offer that was more than fair, better then fair for him anyway. Jeff approached him a couple days before our lawyer gave us the revised contracts and told Dr. S that we were going to be making him a lower offer on his practice. Dr. S was quite put out and told Jeff that if anything we should pay him more since his numbers were up for the last year ( I wonder why!). He asked Jeff what he would be doing if they couldn't work things out and then threatened Jeff that if he tried to open a practice in this area that he(Dr.S) would bankrupt himself before he saw us succeed. So we had that lovely weight sitting on our shoulders for the next week. Jeff gave him the contract, they had more words and Dr. S again asked Jeff's plans. Jeff told him that he would tell him as soon as we had word that we could go ahead on it (meaning getting the loans set up). Jeff accidentally left his brief case at the office, Dr. S searched through it and found his plans for "plan B". Dr. S then called Jeff and fired him over the phone. Jeff was on his way home from work so he turned around to take the keys back. When he got their Dr. S admitted to going through his bag and tried to use some lame excuse that some papers were hanging out that had his name on them, not a chance! Later we found some papers were missing which we know Dr. S stole from Jeff's bag. Dr. S was also frantically searching for a letter that had Jeff's signature on it. We are not sure yet why he wanted it, but we are suspicious that he may have used it on the unsigned contracts. I guess we'll see since his lawyer notified us that if we don't cease and desist our plans to open a practice that Dr. S will open a law suit against us for breach of contract. Funny since we never signed them! And so it goes, we are unemployed, being sued, and trying to get a business started. We have been approved on all the loans except one and we should know tomorrow if that one is approved. Our bank guy is positive it will go through. So the plans are to open 2 offices, one in Montpelier in the same place Dr. S is now (Dr. S was given the boot!) and the other will be in Soda Springs in a building we are planning on buying ( that is the loan we are waiting on). Oh did I mention that Dr. S has pulled this trick on another OD also. We also have a list about a mile long of people willing to testify against Dr. S and his character. Also daily we have people calling us to tell us that they can't stand Dr. S and will gladly give us their business. Even the girls at his office tell us of all the cancellations they are receiving since Jeff is gone. Oh and one other thing, Dr. S fired Jeff a week and a half before Christmas! We love that one, everyone around here thinks he is worse than slime.
So there it is. Sorry that was so long

Deep Snow!

2008-01-19T13:55:00.001-08:00

Good thing we bought a 4-wheeler last year to push snow. It has been snowing and blowing constantly out here for the past couple weeks. Check out the HUGE ice cycle hanging from our house!

Jeff and the kids had fun playing outside in the snow today. They built snow cave and buried themselves chest deep in the snow. We have also had a blast sledding and skiing the slopes. Caden and Talon earned enough money to go to ski school. We have a 4 day school week here, so on Fridays the boys hit the slopes. Pine Creek ski mountain is only 45 minutes away and a bus takes them for us. Last week I went along as a chaperon and got to ski with them. We had a blast!

Here is the part of the view from our back deck. We overlook almost all of Georgetown. The other picture is of Caden making his way down the stairs in 2 + feet of snow, you can see Emilie's head just poking out of the snow in the back by the shed.

Brinley is one! Happy Birthday Sweetie!

2008-01-16T12:18:00.001-08:00

Brin's first wish! Hope it was a good one!
I don't think she liked her birtday cake much. The rest of us loved it though!
Greg and Sherilyn came to celebrate with us.

What a cutie. Brin has been trying to walk for about a month now. On her Birtday she finally started walking more than crawling. I am going to miss that cute little behind wiggling as she crawled away from me!

Christmas Morning!

2007-12-25T19:11:00.000-08:00

Holy Cow! The boys were beyond excited about getting

a Wii for Christmas! I'm sure I will have a cleaner house for a little

while, thanks to the boys never leaving the TV!

3 THINGS I'M GOOD AT...

Video GAMES, Watching TV, Annoying my SISTER!

Talon to a T!

Emilie is so happy Santa brought her the Barbie house

she asked for!

Getting Crazy with the Hyer's

2007-12-25T18:53:00.000-08:00

Grandpa Hyer pierced Brinley's ears for Christmas.

He said since she doesn't have much hair he needed to make

her look more like a girl.

What a dork!

Cousins modeling their new robes from Grandma.

YES! Lets Eat! Our favorite place to hand out!

Our Nativity. The kids were so cute, I especially loved the sheep and angles.

My big brother Darren. This look is pretty typical for him.

No game playing is complete without him!

Having fun with the Collins family

2007-12-25T18:36:00.000-08:00

Porter and his cousin Josh sledding.
Libby, Mary, Emilie, Savannah, and Bonnie singing Christmas songs for us.

They were adorable!

It is so fun to get together with family!

We were just getting ready to open presents!

Ward Christmas Party

2007-12-19T15:22:00.000-08:00

Hopefully they were good enough to get all they asked for:)!

Oh Christmas Tree!

2007-12-07T12:29:00.000-08:00

We decided that it would be a fun family home evening activity to go find ourselves a Christmas tree. By the time Jeff got home from work it was already dark. Because my kids think flashlights are toys, we were going off the sparse moon light. When we thought we found the "perfect tree" Jeff would turn on our dying flashlight to do a quick inspection. After much failure, Talon finally found our "perfect tree". It was crazy getting it down the mountain and onto our car, but it was fun for all of us.
Our tree is about 11 feet tall. It barely fit in our living room after we cut 2' from the top and bottom! We love it!

Brinley's third word, "kitty"!

2007-11-09T17:41:00.000-08:00

If ever Brin is crying or bored, all I have to do is put her outside with the "ke kitty" and she is all smiles!!

The Well's Family

2007-11-09T17:30:00.000-08:00

I am adding these pictures for all of you that have wanted to see the pictures I took of Jen and her family a couple weeks ago. I had a blast working with them. These two really are in love THAT much!!!

Shey was baptized last month.

Halloween!!!

2007-11-09T17:18:00.000-08:00

Ooh, how scary! Talon, aka death, thought that it might be fun to follow Caden the vampire so he could collect his victims. Emmie ran from them all night and was able to hold them off with her martial art skills. Porter the crocodile was able to hold his own. As for Brin she turned them into frogs by the end of the night!!

Aren't they cute

2007-09-21T13:45:00.001-07:00

Star in Your Own JibJab! It's Free!

My Beautiful Sister and Family

2007-09-18T10:37:00.000-07:00

Thanks for letting me take your pictures. You guys look great! Malia, Mike(Malia's hubby), Aaron, Nick, Leilani and Greg.

I love our sunsets and babies!

2007-09-18T10:28:00.001-07:00

I took one look at the sunset and knew I had to get a picture, unfortunately it took me a few minutes to locate my camera and get outside. By that time the sunset wasn't nearly as stunning, but with Brinley in the picture it was saved. What a doll!

Emilie Donates Her Hair to Locks of Love!

2007-09-17T15:26:00.000-07:00

Long hair or short hair, Emmie is still beautiful! Not many five year old girls can say that they have given up their hair for Locks for Love!
She has been so cute and bubbly since cutting off her hair. She loves it!

Especially now that she won't have any more tangles!!!

Moose anyone?

2007-09-17T14:52:00.001-07:00

We were lucky enough to be able to go camping with Grandpa and Grandpa Collins, the Leavitt Family, and the Moose family. Here Porter is posing by the smallest of the three that visited our camp.
These other two walked right past our tents (in the background). Emilie and Porter watching the moose with their cousins Calub and Josh.
Brinley with Josh and Caden. They were great campers.

First Day of School

2007-09-17T14:42:00.000-07:00

Cade and Talon with their best friend Maria. Just last week Caden was voted Student body Vice President and Talon is on the Student Council . Great Job Boys!
Emmie is Loving Kindergarten and her new teacher Mrs. Lewis.

Canoeing into the sunset

2007-09-17T14:32:00.001-07:00

Mom and Dad Collins; Steph, Russ, Alex, Brant, Cameron, and Savannah; and Russ and Raquel came up to visit us for the weekend. We had a blast riding the 4 wheelers and dirt bikes, but gliding off into the sunset was wonderful.

The Bear River. Walking dissidence from our home.

What fun weekend!

2007-09-17T14:19:00.001-07:00

Steph and Russ were good sports to let me take a picture of their dirty faces. Unfortunately I took the picture after they wiped a good amount off.
Russ and Raquel. This was Raquel's first time riding a dirt bike. We took her on an incredibly technical ride. She did awsome!!!
That's it I am never wearing that shirt again!!! No I'm not prego again!

2007-08-17T08:31:00.000-07:00

Rock'n Roll with Bear River Vision

2007-08-16T15:42:00.000-07:00

We loved being in our first parade. The theme was "Rock'n Roll" so we dressed it up with poodle skirts and rolled up cuffs. To top off the look we added the bouncy eye balls that we threw out to the crowd.
Don't we look cute? It is a good thing that I have lost 5 lbs since then. I wish that cameras were a little less truthful, I didn't feel that fat that day!
Emmie loved her poodle skirt. I had to force it off of her!

It was love at first sight. One look at that mini motorcycle and Jeff had to take it on a ride. Good thing he had that leather jacket in the van. What a STUD!!

Fun playing with my Photoshop!

2007-08-15T18:23:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary Travis and Kathlene. You guys are the BEST!
Kathlene and I have been friends for 7 years. I feel like we have been friends forever. She is everything that a true friend is. I Love this beautiful girl!

The places we can go!!!

2007-07-31T12:49:00.000-07:00

Jeff and Holly taking a rest after our long ride up the Mountain. This was my first time driving a dirt bike. It was SCARY!!!!
On our way up to Shermans Peak with our Great friends Sherylnn and Greg.
Over looking Bear Lake Valley with our some more great friends, Amy and Aaron.
Our Huge back yard!!!! I Love living in this beautiful place. Click on this picture and you will be able to see the little town we live in!

Brinley

2007-07-31T11:50:00.000-07:00

Four Generations: Brinley(4), Holly(3), Great Grandma Veteto (1), Grandma Collins (2), Emilie (4)

What a cutie!! Brin is such a sweet little girl. She has been my easiest baby. Got to love that!

Grand Canyon

2007-07-31T10:48:00.000-07:00

Porter
Emilie
Talon
Jeff and Brinley

I love this picture of Cade. I was able to get this picture of him because he wasn't paying attention to me, only to the view!

Bear Lake

2007-07-31T10:27:00.000-07:00

Just Friends? Porter and his friend Marlie are usually terrorizing each other. I caught them in a rare happy moment. These two have some chemistry! I wonder what time will bring???

The Bear Lake Monster! Porter loves to tease the sea gulls with food and then chase them off!

Marlie, Taden, and Talon Catching some rays!

The Bear Lake Sweetie...

Brinley loves playing in and eating the sand on the beach. If we put her in the Bumbo she can't reach the sand as easy.